The Block Street Block Party was a day of sun and fun in downtown Fayetteville, Arkansas. It was also a day of music, on multiple sound stages including this one, where the Fayetteville Roots Festival held sway. This one was special, as you can see, because the amps were powered by solar energy. It was […]

You might be surprised to learn that PV cells beat plants in their efficiency at turning sunlight into energy. Scientific American reported that photosynthesis turns about 3% of the sunlight a plant receives into energy, while a solar panel harvests about 10% of the energy it receives. Let this tech triumph help keep your home […]

Former U.S. Secretary of Energy Steven Chu would like to see a change in the way solar power is installed in U.S. homes — not in the technical procedure, but in the business model. Now, homeowners and business owners pay to have renewable energy projects completed on their property. Some of these projects are grid […]

Solar panels are not cheap, so you want to get your money’s worth if you are going to live off of their energy. Living in the northern hemisphere requires us to THINK SOUTH— specifically Due South, especially in the winter time. Figure that the strongest solar energy will be available between 9 AM and 3 […]

Douglas Hutchings, a tech entrepreneur here in Northwest Arkansas, received half a million dollars in grant money from the Department of Energy for his work on one simple effort: making the materials for solar energy installations cheaper. Hutchings was quoted as saying that the new technology they’re working on now will make solar energy the […]

Typical solar energy systems may range from two to sixteen panels, and a large public building may need many more. Determining the size of your array – how many solar panels you’ll need – is part of what we at Richter Solar Energy do in preparation for your installation, and the cost is included in […]

In order to choose the right elements for your solar energy system (your solar electric array, batteries, inverter, water pump, etc), you must begin with what your personal energy demands are going to be. Contributing factors: Whether you are using a grid tie-in system (you will still have access to electricity from the power company) […]

If your solar electric system is part of a bigger plan which includes building your dream house, you can make design decisions which will help reduce your energy needs: Natural Day Lighting–Locate windows (and skylights) so that they light up your most frequented spaces. Even on cloudy days a well thought out window placement can […]